Then There Were None
by ForeverMeansAlways
Summary: The team wakes up in a locked-down house and find themselves caught in a hellish nightmare. They are forced to participate in a macabre game of elimination - a game only one of them will leave alive. How much blood will they shed to stay alive? BB.AH.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Bones or the poem this is based of off.

**Summary: **The team wakes up in a locked-down house and find themselves caught in a hellish nightmare. They are forced to participate in a macabre game of elimination - a game only one of them will leave alive. How much blood will they shed to stay alive? BB. AH. I guess it's AU.

**A/N: **I read several different takes on this in different fandoms. There's not one for bones. (or at least I don't think there is, sorry if I'm mistaken) Well, anywho, this is my take on it. Oh, and stole a few lines at the end from Saw2. It fits, trust me.

And special thanks to my beta! CSIJaina.

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**Chapter 1 ~There were Nine ~ **

Booth let out an agonizing groan as he slowly opened his eyes. His temples burned, and the constant drumming inside his head seemed to intensify with every minute. As he drew in gulps of air, he forced his eyes open and focused on the ceiling above him. Slowly the room stopped spinning, but the pounding in his head didn't cease.

It felt like a hangover from hell. What the fuck did he have to drink last night? But the odd thing was he couldn't remember _anything _from the previous night. Shouldn't he have at least some recollection of opening a beer?

Pushing himself up, he glanced around the room once again. For one startling moment his stomach dropped inside of him. He didn't know where he was. Of course, this wasn't the first time he'd woken up in a bed he didn't know, but there was something different. The feeling of safeness wasn't there, and there wasn't a mattress, only a floor. The room was dark and held a strange smell of dampness. A basement, maybe?

That's when he saw her. She was lying not too far away from him, and she wasn't moving.

A sudden wave of fear forced him to fully regain consciousness, and he stumbled over to her. Brennan was laying on her side, eyes closed, with her arm in an almost impossible position. Bile rose in the back of his throat at her unresponsive form.

"Bones?" he forced out.

Booth inhaled sharply as he felt for a pulse. He sighed in relief when he felt the steady beat under his fingertips.

"Booth?"

His head shot up at the all too familiar voice. "Angela?"

"Oh, God. What… where… Brennan?" Angela choked out as she crawled over to him.

Booth could see that she was crying, and from the looks of it she had been doing it for awhile now. "She's alive, Angela. She'll be okay," he reassured, praying that he was right.

"And… Hodgins… Oh God." She inhaled sharply, a reaction that would surely set off hyperventilation. "And Cam…Sweets… why? I've been awake… for so long…? I don't know… I don't know…"

Booth reached out to grab her wrists. "Breathe, Angela. Take a deep breath. You're having a panic attack." Her breathing was torn and came heavy in heavy gasps as she struggled to calm herself. He wasn't sure how long it took her to pull herself together, but once she did, he asked, "Now, what were you saying?"

She lifted one shaking finger and pointed to the far side of the room. His heart stopped at the sight of the three of them, slumped against the wall. He crawled over to them, and the pounding inside his head seemed to grow louder with ever step he took. By the time he reached them Hodgins and Cam were coming back to life, looking extremely drained and exhausted.

"Hey, kid," Booth said, fear sneaking into his voice as he shook the young doctor awake. "Sweets. Come on…"

Sweets let out an indignant noise as his head fell forward onto Booth's shoulder. "Booth?"

"Yeah, kid?" Booth sighed in relief.

"W-what… are… you doing here?" Sweets licked his lips which were chapped and crusted with blood. "Why… you… my house?"

"If this is your house Sweets, you need a serious make-over," Booth told him, trying to force humor, but it hadn't come out in the way he'd hoped. "And I'm still trying to figure out the first one."

Hodgins, who was slumped against Sweets, blinked wildly in an attempt to clear his eyesight. His piercing blue eyes fluttered open, as did Cam's. "Angela… where's…?"

"I'm right here," Angela told him, already at his side cradling him in her arms.

For a moment, Booth felt a stab of hatred towards her for leaving Brennan alone. But a soft moan tore his attention from that thought. "Bones, thank God," he breathed out with a heavy sigh, and in the blink of an eye he was by her side, checking for any signs of serious injuries. He slowly helped her up and she somewhat slumped against him, completely drained and lost.

"Booth… what?"

"You're okay, Bones," he reassured as he subconsciously pulled her closer to him. Booth had no idea how much time had passed before she finally came to her senses. It could have been hours or mere minutes until she finally pulled away from him, but when she finally did, Booth felt a feeling of emptiness wash over him.

"Booth, where are we?"

He rose to his feet, leaning against the wall for support. Looking around, he found himself in a room completely unknown to him, with his entire team waking up at his feet. The excruciating pain in his brain sidetracked him from the dangerous situation they were in, and if he had been sober, he definitely would have been worried. But for now, the only thing he could focus on was the humming in his brain.

"Oh, God!" Sweets practically screamed, finally regaining consciousness. "Daisy…Wake up… please. Oh God…"

Daisy? What was Sweets's girlfriend doing here? Booth shot them a confused look. Sweets was hovering over top of her lifeless form, shaking her wildly, while Cam was doing her best to calm him down.

"I'm sure she's fine," Cam reassured him, but she didn't sound too sure herself.

"Booth…" Brennan began as she stumbled to her feet, but fell when she tripped over something large and heavy. Her knees came down hard on the cement floor, and she cried out in pain at the sudden blow.

"Bones!" Booth ran to her side, and practically dragged her away from whatever it was that she had tripped over. He was standing in front of her now, already in his defensive mode. If they were under normal circumstances she would have told him to back off, but in all honesty, she was too drugged to notice.

The figure she tripped over let out a moan before violently jerking to life. He rolled over, spitting up what seemed like half a lake, and then with one cry of pain he slumped down again, motionless. She peered around Booth, getting a glimpse at whoever it was. Her breath caught in the back of her throat at the realization that she knew him.

"Zach?" she asked, disbelief etching into her voice.

"Ow," Zach muttered, rubbing his arm from where Brennan had tripped over him.

"Zach?" Hodgins crawled over to him, more than surprised to see his friend. "What… how?"

Zach was wearing the white prison uniform from the psych ward, and he too seemed at a loss to explain the predicament they were all in. "I… I don't know. It feels like someone injected me with something."

"I don't like this," Angela said.

"Whoever drugged us made sure not to let us see his – or her – face," Hodgins told them all.

Booth punched the wall. "This is fucked up."

By now, Daisy was finally coming around, and Sweets cried out for joy. "Thank God… I thought… I thought…"

Daisy just blinked up at him, for she was still coming out of her daze. "What… where…?"

Sweets smiled. "You're okay… you're okay."

"If there's a way in, there's a way out," Cam reasoned.

"But _where _are we?" Hodgins asked, more than irritated. "And how the hell did we get here?"

But no one knew. Everyone's minds were blurred and confused as they tried to remember the night before, but nothing clicked. None of them knew the answers. None of them knew where they were. None of them knew anything. The room was strange to them all.

It was a basement. One that was worn and grim. There was no furniture, only stone walls and a cement floor. The air was damp and moldy, and held the smell of abandonment. There were no windows, but a broad door was at the very far side of the room. It was left ajar, leading into what looked like a dimly lit hallway.

General confusion hung in the air as everyone took in their surroundings.

"I can't remember how I got here," Zach broke the silence, slightly dazed. He was holding his head in his hands, trying to stop the drums that pounded like a chant inside his head.

Brennan eyed him as if he were a ghost. She couldn't remember the last time she saw him, and if they were anywhere else she would have hugged him, or done something. "I don't remember either." She forced herself to bring the words to life.

There were murmurs of agreement from the others, but it was Daisy who began to shriek. Booth rubbed his temples, desperately trying to drown out her screaming. If he hadn't liked her company before, he definitely hated it now. Of all the people to be taken hostage with, he was stuck with her. Were they slowly trying to kill him?

"Calm down," Booth snapped, but Daisy didn't stop.

Daisy's eyes grew wide as she clutched at her chest and stomach. "I can't breathe! I can't breathe!" she screamed over and _over _again.

Apparently he wasn't the only one who was frustrated because Brennan snapped too, "Screaming isn't going to solve anything."

It was Angela and Sweets who managed to calm her down. "Everything is going to be okay. You'll see," one of them told her.

Hodgins pulled himself to his feet. "I don't know about you guys, but I'm going to get the hell out of here." With those words said, he headed out the door, leaving them all dumbfounded.

"Damn it, Hodgins," Booth screamed. "I'm not going to save your sorry ass…"

But nevertheless, he still ran after him, and the others soon followed. The hallway was dark; hardly any light shone through from the light bulbs hanging up above. It seemed like it went on forever, and even Brennan was intimidated by the black abyss.

"They're all locked," Cam announced as she tried the various doors on either side of the hallway.

"Hey guys!" Hodgins screamed from up ahead.

Everyone felt their hearts sink at the sight of the large metal door at the hallway's end. Now almost all hope of escaping just vanished.

"There has to be another way out," Cam noted.

Angela buried her fingernails into Hodgins's skin. "I really don't like this."

Sweets pulled Daisy closer to him. She was shivering uncontrollably now, and her skin was burning up. "Daisy, are you okay?"

"I… I don't know."

"Guys, I think something is wrong," he said, but they all either ignored him or hadn't heard.

Brennan approached the large door, studying it intently. Latched onto it was a large clock with bright red, nerve-wracking numbers. It was set for a little over ten hours, and it was counting down. Down to when it opened? To their deaths? She didn't know. "It's a timer," Brennan told them without the slightest bit of fear or disappointment.

"For what?" Zach asked.

"This is bull." Booth ran at the door with all of his strength and crashed into. However, it didn't even budge; he just bounced off of it like a ping-pong ball.

"Maybe there are windows," Angela suggested hopefully.

"No, there's not," Cam said, as Booth threw himself at the door again.

"I don't feel good," Daisy moaned.

Sweets crumpled to the floor as his legs gave out from under him. "Whoever brought us here made sure not to let us escape. He or she managed to get us all here without being caught. They're smart. I guarantee you that the only way out is going to be through those doors."

"Well, aren't we Mr. Pessimistic?" Booth snapped. And then –once again – he started for the door, but Brennan stopped him.

"Would you stop that? You're just going to end up hurting yourself," she scowled him.

"At least I'm doing _something_."

"He's right," Brennan agreed, ignoring his attitude. "It doesn't hurt to try. There has to be another way."

"We're going to die!" Daisy sobbed. "We're all going to die. I'm never going to see my family… Oh God." If possible, she paled even more before wincing in pain and spitting up blood. She screamed at the sight of the cruel color. "Oh… God…I can't die. I just can't. I –"

"Shut up!" Hodgins shouted, who hadn't seen her spitting up blood.

Sweet pulled himself up, dragging Daisy behind him. "Hey, don't talk to her like that." Hodgins didn't let his guard down; he only took a menacing step towards the doctor.

Booth rolled his eyes at their childish behavior. "Okay, while you children sort this out, Bones and I are going to take a look around."

"But Daisy?" Sweets choked out.

Brennan took one look at girl. "She seems to be experiencing –"

A loud moan from the adjacent room cut her off. They all froze except for Brennan, who gladly walked towards the door. Booth caught her wrist. "Bones, stop! You can't just go opening doors. You don't know what's behind there."

Brennan glared at him. "I can take care of myself, Booth."

"What if the guy behind the door has a gun? Huh? What are you going to do?"

She didn't back down. "Do I have to remind you that I have more than three black belts?" she shot back.

Booth frowned, pushing himself in front of her. "I don't care if you're queen of the world. You're not going in there alone."

"I don't know what you're talking about. It's impossible for someone –"

Hodgins cut her off. "Dr. Goodman?"

Brennan's and Booth's heads shot towards their colleague. In the mist of their fight, Hodgins, Sweets, and Cam had opened the door.

"What are you doing here?" Zach asked to his utter disbelief.

"I could be asking you the same thing, Dr. Addy," Goodman told him. With the help of Hodgins and Cam, they managed to get him on his feet. "I just woke up here."

Booth groaned at the sight of yet _another _person. "Are there any others in there? 'Cause I'm getting sick of this."

"Are you okay?" Angela asked, always the caring one.

"It feels like I've been drugged." Goodman gave her a weak smile. "I would say it's nice to see you – all of you – but the statement doesn't seem to fit under these circumstances."

"Good, you can tell us when we get the hell out of here," Booth told him sarcastically.

Hodgins ignored him. "Do you remember anything?"

"No."

Booth sighed as he glanced around. There were nine– including him – and Booth felt something he hadn't felt in a long time: scared. No. That was an understatement. He was terrified. Not so much for his own life, but the lives of his friends – especially Brennan's.

"It's like a twisted version of the Gravedigger," Hodgins noted his thoughts out loud.

Goodman looked utterly confused. "Who?"

"No one." Sweets shrugged it off. Until then, he, Daisy, and Cam had stayed back, feeling awfully out of place with this stranger.

"I feel sick," Daisy moaned, and suddenly she dropped to the floor.

"Daisy!"

Brennan noted that Sweets and Angela were dealing with daisy, so she continued down the hallway. Booth groaned. "Damn it, Bones! What did I tell you?"

Goodman threw a look at his ex-colleagues. "I see things haven't changed."

Angela smirked, but it was forced. "Not in the slightest."

"Booth." Irritation filled Brennan's voice. "We have to –"

But she never finished that thought, for she was cut off once again. This time however, to her surprise, it was Zach.

"Guys…" Fear filled his voice, and it unnerved them all. "I… think I found something."

He was in the room that they had found Goodman in, and he was holding a tape-recorder.

"Where'd you find that?" Hodgins asked.

"It was on the floor," Zach stuttered. "What should I do with it?"

Booth ripped it out of the young doctor's hands. "Give me that."

"What do you think it is?" Angela asked.

"That's what I'm going to find out."

"Wait!" Sweets screamed.

Booth and Hodgins rolled their eyes. "What?"

"What if it's a trap? Like a bomb."

From across the room Angela let out a muffled cry at the possibility, and Daisy collapsed to the floor as her legs gave out from under her.

Brennan considered this. "He's right. If we push play, we could all die."

"I don't think it'd be a bomb," Zach told them, and all eyes turned to him. He stuttered to respond. "Well, if… whoever took us… wanted us to die, they would have killed us back home. He wouldn't have bothered to bring us all the way out here."

"Exactly!" Booth actually smiled. "See! I knew I liked you for a reason."

Zach didn't know if it was a compliment or not.

"Zach's right," Cam cut in. "Push play. If it's a trap, then at least we all die together."

Booth nodded and pushed the button. The room was filled with static as the wheels of the recorder spun, and then a startling voice took its place.

"_Greetings," _the ominous voice spoke,_ "and welcome." _

Despite themselves, they all jerked back. Some let out cries; others just stared in shock as they listened to the cruel words that escaped this killer's mouth. The voice was contorted, sending shivers up everyone's spine.

"_I trust that you are all wondering where you are. I can assure you that while your location is not important, what these walls offer __for__ you is important. Salvation. If you earn it. Four hours from now the door to this house will open. Unfortunately, you only have three hours to live."_

They shot each other nervous glances. Except for the recorder and Daisy's hacking, the room was deathly silent. It was a silence so enduring that Booth could count the erratic heart beats of everyone in the room.

"_Right now, you are inhaling a deadly nerve agent. You've been breathing it since you arrived here. Those of you familiar with the Tokyo subway attacks will know its devastating effects on the human body."_

The ones who knew of the virus inhaled sharply. It attacked the nervous systems and its effects were deadly. Exposure led to bleeding at the mouth and nose, tightness in the chest, trouble seeing and breathing, vomiting, drooling, twitching... and the list went on, each symptom getting worse over time.

_"The only way to overcome it and escape this house is to find the antidote, which is on the other side of the door. But here's the catch. Only one can leave the house alive. The rest will not. Who it will be is up to you. As soon as one person remains, the doors will open."_

By now they had all moved closer together, hoping for some sort of comfort in the people around them, but nothing came. The situation and the truth of the killer's words were too unnerving to think about.

"_How much blood will you shed to stay alive? Live or die, make your choice…"_

There was a long enduring pause before the voice returned.

"_Let the game begin." _

And the line went dead.

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***DunDunDun* **

**haha. So should I continue?**


	2. Chapter 2

**Okay, sooooo sorry this took me so long. I had a writer's block, then I went away for most of the summer, so I saw no point in updating. But now I have time. Oh and from here on out there will be character death. Don't let that chase you away though... give it a chance... please? I can't remember if I mentioned this or not in the last chapter and I'm too lazy to check...I got this idea from a lot of different fandoms, but mainly I got it from Criminal Minds. That author did poems at the end, which I thought was rather interesting, so I'm going to borrow that idea. **

**And THANKS sooooo much for all your reviews for the last chapter. I'm honestly sorry about how long this took to update. That was my fault when I knew I didn't have time for another story. But now I do. **

**And thanks again to my beta =) **

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**Chapter Two**

**-And Then There Were Eight-**

Even after the tape was played, they could still hear the ominous voice hovering around them. It sent them into a world of hysterics. Only one? The thought alone was unfathomable. No one wanted to be the first to strike up a conversation, so instead they eyed each other, trying to determine if there was even the slightest bit of truth in that message. However, all they saw was fear and confirmation in each others' eyes.

Booth was the first one to break the silence. "This is fucked up."

Hodgins huffed in agreement. "You can say that again."

"There is no way that can be real. Right?" Angela asked, hope or maybe it was fear sneaking into her voice.

No one was willing to tell her otherwise – that is, except Brennan. "No. I think it is –"

Booth cut her off, before she could scare them even more. The last thing they needed was to turn on each other out of fear. "We don't know that for sure."

"We should go over everything," Sweets spoke up. "Like, what we remember before we woke up here. There are nine of us. Someone's bound to remember _something." _

Zach spoke first, "Well, I didn't come here willingly."

"And thank you, Captain Obvious," Booth shouted sarcastically, which earned him an icy glare from Brennan.

"It has to be someone we know," Cam cut in, and then almost instantly every eye turned to her. "Well, think about it," she continued lamely. "Why us?"

Daisy groaned. "I need to sit down."

"Here," Angela said, lending her a hand. "You're going to be okay."

"Cam is right," Goodman told them, and strangely enough his deep voice calmed all of them. "Whoever took us wants us to lose our trust and thereby turn on each other."

"Like that's going to happen," Sweets scoffed.

"Over my dead body." The words were out of Hodgins's mouth before he could stop them, but thankfully no mentioned the irony of the situation.

"No. It's going to happen," Brennan told them, and everyone caught her gaze. For the first time she sounded truly agitated, and it was so unlike her, that it worried them all. "Only one can live. If we just sit this out, the effects of the virus will drive us to the unthinkable. Anthropologically speaking, we _will _–"

"Bones_, please_," Booth groaned. "Not now. I don't need to hear all that science mumbo-jumbo."

"What?" she asked defensively. "I'm only stating the –"

Booth took a menacing step in front of her, and cut her off, "Would you be able to kill me, Bones? Huh?"

"If you knew me, Booth, you wouldn't have to ask that question."

Her voice was so soft, barely audible, but Booth could hear the truth in her words. Suddenly he felt guilty about the way he had treated her – all of them – so he took a step back. His attitude wasn't helping the situation; neither was arguing. Sighing dramatically, he slumped to the ground in defeat.

Cam looked around. "We should probably search the place."

"Search what?" Hodgins asked, more than annoyed. "The room we woke up in has nothing in it. This room… There's nothing but that door, which is our only exit, and the other doors are all locked."

"Well maybe Booth could knock them down…"

Booth glared at them. "Oh, no. I'm not going to be the scapegoat."

"What goat?" Brennan asked, completely out of touch.

"Nothing, Bones."

"But, if we stay in here," Sweets jumped in, "we should be able to monitor every entrance to the living room and keep whoever took us from entering." He crossed his hands over his chest and sighed. "The door has to unlock eventually, we should be able to hold the fort for that long. Shouldn't we?"

Everyone agreed, so they hauled themselves up off the floor and positioned themselves at different points in the house. Booth and Hodgins each took a poker from the fireplace and held them tightly as they guarded the entrances to the two rooms. One led to the hallway where they came from, and the other led into an adjacent room. Brennan and Cam took the room where they found Goodman, while Sweets paced the long hallway. Only Angela and Daisy seemed to sit motionless, for they were still shocked at the situation.

A few minutes passed by. Then a few more. And a few more.

But the house was dead silent. Everyone tried to keep as quiet as humanly possible to be able to detect any approaching menace, but there was nothing. The house was as empty of sounds as it had been when they first woke up.

Zach stood beside one of the large bookshelves, eying the literature. Most of the books he had already read, but there were a few he'd never heard of. He made sure to remember the titles so he could read them when he got out of this house. _If_ he got out of this house.

"I feel sick," Daisy repeated, for what felt like the one hundredth time since they woke up. Then, with bright and teary eyes she looked up at Angela. "I don't want to die."

Angela swallowed hard and forced out a lie. "We won't."

"The house is secluded and as far as we know, inescapable." Goodman frowned, gesturing in front of his chest. "Whoever put this together has taken every precaution possible to prevent us from leaving this house. I'd highly doubt there is a phone line, and from the looks of it, even if we had our cell phones we'd be well out of any service area."

"He obviously has some major issue with us; all of us, since he locked us up here. Even you," Hodgins said, gesturing towards Zach, Daisy, and Angela who all seemed unlikely candidates for this malicious 'game'. "It's gotta be someone we all know."

Staring straight out into the open air, Sweets's mind began processing the information. "But even then, how would he have gotten Zach out of the ward without being noticed?"

Daisy shook violently, fighting the urge to throw up. "Oh…" Daisy sobbed as she wiped away the blood that was dripping from her nose.

"Daisy?" Sweets asked, his voice raised with question and concern.

And then she felt another wave of nausea wash over her, crumpling to the floor as she emptied her stomach of any earlier meals. She was vaguely aware of Sweets running to her side, but all she could feel was the pain. God, the pain! It tore her apart in an agonizing torture that she hadn't even known existed.

"Daisy!" Sweets screamed. "What… what's wrong with her?!"

Even Brennan's voice seemed slightly on edge. "She's experiencing the side effects… She must have been here longer than we have…"

"God, no! Daisy?" Sweets cried.

Angela choked back a sob and buried her head into Hodgins's shoulder, as if that simple act could make her forget. Booth and Goodman stood back, feeling that it wasn't their place to help or their area of expertise. Even Zach, who knew the body inside and out, seemed too shocked to move.

Brennan dropped to her knees, agitated that nobody else was helping. "Daisy, can you hear me?" she shouted. "I need you to take a deep breath."

Daisy didn't answer her. Instead, she held her stomach, unaware that she was shaking violently and foaming at the mouth. Her breathing came in short, strained bursts until a powerful cough ripped through her throat, sending a massive spray of blood straight up into the air, hitting Sweets square in the face. Letting go of her shoulders Sweets stumbled backwards, blinking through the cascade of blood that had been splashed over him.

"Oh my God! Oh my God!"

Cam threw Sweets back, taking his place. "Daisy, can you hear me?"

But Daisy heard nothing. She drew a long, strained, and gurgling breath, before releasing it. And then in one startling moment she jerked violently, coughing up a river of blood, and with one final cry of pain she slumped back, motionless. It was over as quickly as it had begun.

"Daisy?" Sweets pushed Cam and the others out of his way. He choked back a sob at the sight of his girlfriend, who lay motionless on the dirt floor. Her eyes were staring straight out into nothingness, now glazed and lifeless. "God, no. No, no, no…" He picked up her lifeless body, cradling her in his arms.

The thought that it could have been Brennan forced Booth to look away. A river of tears flowed down Angela's cheeks, and Hodgins pulled her into a tighter hug. Zach and Goodman stared out into space in utter shock. Even Brennan, who was so good at keeping her emotions at bay, seemed to be out of touch with reality.

"Sweets," Cam told him gently. "She's dead."

"No!" he snapped, roughly pushing her away. His cries were both heart-wrenching and agonizing. They filled the room, echoing loudly throughout the walls. They could all feel his sorrow now, which made it all the harder to breathe and impossible to think. This alone was enough proof of the predicament they were truly in. Only one could live. One would live while the others would die. And who that one was – whoever that shall be – would have to live with the fact that they watched their friends die. It was a no-win situation.

Anger boiled inside of Booth. "What the hell is this!?" Booth shouted to no one in particular. "If you're so brave, show yourself!"

"Booth, calm down," Brennan tried, but he hadn't seemed to have heard her.

"I don't know who the hell you are, but if you think this is some kind of game you sick _fuck_, you're wrong!"

Suddenly, from somewhere in the house, the team could hear a clear and melodic whisper, sending chills up their spines. Its message was no less disturbing than the one they had received some time earlier.

"_Nine little friends locked in a house. _

_Something told them that they wouldn't get out. _

_But one had the misfortune of an unlucky fate. _

_Lo and behold, and then there were eight."_

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**A/N: Hope it was okay. **

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	3. Chapter 3

**So I've reread this story and realized I haven't updated in a year. I will start updating again. I also realized that this chapter didn't have page breaks, which bothered me, so I fixed that****. For the past week I've written out every chapter up until the end. So now I just have to proof read them. **

**Thank you again for your reviews. **

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**Chapter 3 **

**- And Then There Were Seven -**

It was only now that the situation at hand was finally beginning to take its toll on all of them. The danger they were truly in now seemed real, whereas before it only seemed like a hellish nightmare, one that they would eventually wake up from. But now that wasn't so true anymore. One of them had already fallen to the victim count and as awful as it was, they had to push that thought away for now because they needed to focus on not letting that count rise.

Together, they made their way back down the long hallway, leaving Daisy by the exit door. Only Sweets stayed behind, mourning for his loss. The others waited respectfully as he did his best to pull himself together. And with one shaky breath, they watched as Sweets placed a quilt over her, covering her from head to toe. In another circumstance they all would have mourned for his loss, but for now they had to compartmentalize their sorrows – at least long enough to get the hell out of there.

After what felt like an eternity, Sweets shuffled over to them, looking like a lost puppy. "I was going to tie the knot," he told them sadly

All of them gave a nod of sympathy, but only Brennan took it literally. "I don't know what that means. What knot?"

Booth groaned inwardly. "Bones, not now. Okay?"

She gave him an incredulous look, but must have sensed not to bicker with him about it because she changed the subject. "Someone is obviously in this house."

"It must have come over a loud-speaker or something..." Cam said, referring to the rhyme that spread throughout the house after Daisy had died.

"Which means someone is watching us," Hodgins finished for her.

Angela looked around with frantic eyes. "But who?"

That was the unanswered question. Who hated them enough to want to kill them by watching them turn on each other? But no one came to mind. Even Booth and Brennan who had dealt with and interrogated thousands of criminals couldn't think of one that would want to do_ this. _

"We should split up," Goodman suggested. "Search all of the rooms, even the locked ones. Maybe we could find weapons or something."

Booth glared. "Why? So we can kill each other?"

Goodman swallowed hard, but his stance remained strong. "No… so that we can use them to get out of here or kill whoever kidnapped us."

"He's right," Sweets, who had still been in shock until now, choked out. "We should search the place. I mean, look what happened when we stayed here."

Unconsciously, everyone glanced at Daisy's motionless body.

"I hate this," Angela whispered suddenly, slumping against the nearest wall as she did so. A second after that, the wall she had been leaning on sunk in and Angela disappeared in a tornado of dust.

For a moment or two everyone stared in horror at the spot where Angela had just been. Booth was sure he heard every sharp intake of breath, every heart stop, and when Angela started to scream he heard every sigh of relief. Screaming was better than dead.

"Angie!" Hodgins shouted, running for her.

Angela screamed, kicking at the cobwebs and dust that engulfed her. Hodgins and the others wasted no time pulling her to her feet and dragging her to safety. She was coughing violently and struggling to breathe – no doubt from the dust and the sudden scare.

"Are you okay?" Hodgins asked, and Angela just threw herself at him. He caught her against his chest, whispering soothing words into her ear. "Hey, you're okay. You're okay."

Brennan watched her friend for a moment, at a loss for words. The only times she had felt like this was when she had found out that her mother had died, and again when she thought Booth had died. She didn't like it, so naturally she pulled on that mask of courage and did her best to act like everything was fine.

"Hey," Cam said suddenly. "There are steps."

Goodman stared down into the dark abyss. "It must lead to a basement or something."

"It was hidden," Booth noted. "Which probably means that there are more doors like this."

"Right." Brennan nodded in agreement, already heading down the stairs.

"For the love of God, Bones," Booth groaned, catching her wrist. "What did I tell you about heading off without a weapon?"

She pulled away from him, a glare already in place. "And how many black belts did I tell you I had?" she shot back. "Besides, you said we should split up."

Booth frowned. "Fine. We'll split off. Bones and I will take the basement…"

"Angela and I will check this floor," Hodgins offered, which earned a muffled cry from Angela.

Cam nodded. "I'll check the locked doors."

"I'll help," Goodman said.

Sweets slumped down on the ground, completely miserable. "I'm staying here with Daisy. Someone should stay anyway to make sure no one comes."

Brennan's eyebrows fused together. "The likelihood of our kidnapper coming back is extremely low given that–"

"Fine," Booth cut her off. "That's fine, Sweets. Meet back here in fifteen minutes. If something goes wrong scream like there is no tomorrow. Okay? Good."

And nobody argued.

_**-Bones-**_

"Ugh, Bones," Booth huffed. "Where are you? I can't see a damn thing."

"I'm right here," she called out, as if he could see her.

"Not helping, Bones. Just stay behind me," he whispered. He could feel his heart hammering in his chest, and he wondered how the hell this darkness didn't scare the shit out of her.

"Why are you whispering?" she asked, yet whispering herself nonetheless.

"Because we don't know what's down here," he told her, reaching for where he thought she was. "Now, just stay –"

And then the room was engulfed with light and thinking the worst, Booth tackled Brennan to the ground to protect her. He pulled her close, protecting her head as they hit the hard ground and so as not to crush her with his weight, he broke the fall with his hands. And for what he prayed wasn't the last time, he breathed in the scent of her. But the explosion or gun shot, or whatever the hell he had been expecting never came.

"Oh," the startled voice gasped. "I'm sorry… I didn't expect…"

Booth glanced up to find Zach standing with his hand over a light switch. Now why hadn't they thought of that? "Zach, what the hell are you doing here?"

"Nobody gave me a partner, and I wasn't going to just sit up there with Sweets while he cried over Daisy. I followed you guys," he told them, looking like a small child in that ridiculous uniform. "However, I see that you two would like a moment to yourselves."

Booth glanced down at Brennan, who was underneath of him. Only now did he realize what it looked like and feeling his cheeks flame, he pushed himself off of her. "Nothing is going on," he said as he brushed himself off.

"But…"

"Nothing," Booth insisted, before shrugging off to the far side of the room.

Brennan seemed unfazed by the situation, for she just hauled herself to her feet and gave a weak smile at Zach before going in the opposite direction of where Booth had gone.

"Why?" Zach asked suddenly, coming up from behind her.

She turned, eyebrows raised in question. "I don't know. This is a depraved individual..."

"That's not what I meant," Zach interrupted her; still not letting his head lift from its bowed position. "I meant _you_. Why did you never come to visit? Everybody else did. Even Booth. But you… You never came."

Brennan closed her eyes. She had known the question would come. It had just been a matter of time. Ever since the… accident… she had convinced herself that Zach had transferred to Canada or somewhere far away and was unable to be reached by phone. Couldn't he see that she wasn't willing to accept the truth of what had happened? If she went to visit him then it would make the situation real, and she wasn't sure she could live with that.

"Zach... I don't think this is the time and place for this."

"Then when is?" The young man's head snapped up and he gave his former mentor an accusing stare. It was so uncharacteristic of him, it caused her to freeze. "Of all people, Dr. Brennan, I-I never thought..." Zach couldn't continue because of the lump in his throat. So much had happened in less than an hour, and so many emotions collided inside him.

"Are you alright?" she asked him, sensing that he was going to be sick.

He quickly pushed that feeling aside. "I just want to know why…"

"I… I'm sorry," was all she managed, but Zach never heard those words because he had already turned his back to her and was running up the stairs.

-**_Bones-_**

Hodgins kicked down one of the locked doors on the main floor. It led to another pair of stairs, but this time they headed straight up into the unknown. He gave an uneasy glance at Angela before swallowing hard and pushing himself to move on. With one last shaky breath, he raised the poker he had found up to shoulder height and ready to attack, then made his way up the creaky floorboards. This room, like the other three they'd been in already, was basically empty.

He spotted a baseball bat partially hidden in the shadows of the room. Retrieving it he shoved it into Angela's hands, all the while feeling a little bit safer now that she had something to protect herself with if he failed like he had done in the past.

"You know," he told her, "I never stopped loving you."

She gave him a weak smile. "This isn't the time, Jack."

He turned around, his eyes glistening with tears. "Then when is?"

**_-Bones-_**

Cam stayed close to Goodman as they explored the rooms along the hallway. The poker was their only weapon, and Goodman held it tight and high above his head as he took a few steps into the first room. Cam didn't know the man, nor had she ever met him prior to taking over for him. To this day she didn't know why he had resigned, and after working with the team for almost three years she found it even harder to understand why he had left.

"Why?" she asked him. "Why'd you leave?"

Goodman just shrugged. "I have twin girls," he told her. "I didn't spend enough time with them."

She nodded; the answer was good as any. As Goodman stepped into what seemed to be the master bedroom, he raised the poker in front of his chest, ready for anything.

But the sudden blow came too fast and he never saw it coming.

The sharp pain he felt as something sliced its way straight across his throat paralyzed him. Dropping the poker on the floor the man clamped his hand on his throat, but when he felt his fingers sink into open flesh, he slumped back against the wall.

A gargling sound emerged from Goodman's mouth as it opened to call out for Cam to get away, but his cry never came.

"Goodman…?"

He could hear her voice, but it was distant and vague. And soon, her pleas became completely drowned out and were replaced by a dull echo in his head. The lack of oxygen got to him, making him drop to his knees. Blood pulsated over his fingers as he desperately tried to gain a single breath of air.

"Oh my… Stay with me!" Cam screamed.

Mouth gasping for air and his eyes wide in terror, he slumped over on the floor, clawing at the floor below him. Moments later he was still, and a last gargle could be heard as blood continued to pour from his throat.

All that could be heard was the hysteric screaming of Cam, echoing throughout the house. And maybe, if she hadn't been screaming her heart out, she would have heard or seen the ominous figure exit through the closet door with a knife in hand, which no doubt led to another hidden passage.

Everyone heard the horrifying scream as it pierced the dull silence of the mansion. Dropping all at hand – except their weapons – they ran to the place where the unending screams originated. Sweets and Zach arrived first, followed by Angela and Hodgins. What they found would haunt them in their nightmares forever, should they be so lucky as to live through the night.

Dr. Goodman lay sprawled on the dusty floorboards where a pool of blood had formed under his head and chest. His eyes had the same glazed look that Daisy's had held earlier. Cam was hunched over him, screaming in panic and desperately trying to stop the blood flow with her hands.

Booth and Brennan raced into the room, a wooden stick in Booth's hand. Where he got it the others couldn't be sure, but none of that seemed to matter now. Brennan crouched down, feeling for a pulse, but found none.

"He's dead, Cam," she told her.

Cam stifled back a sob, as did Angela who ran out of the room. The others followed suit, leaving Goodman in the empty room. Sobbing into Hodgins's shoulder, Angela tried to regain some form of composure, but the panic and devastation inside her made it impossible.

"I..." Cam managed to press through her lips. "Someone killed him! Someone killed him! Oh, God… I was there and I didn't…" She was hysteric, tugging at her hair as she slumped against a wall.

"Calm down, Cam," Sweets tried to soothe, when in fact he wanted nothing more than to scream at the top of his lungs himself.

"Did you see who it was?" Booth crouched down beside her.

"No…I didn't see."

All of a sudden the melodic, whispering voice returned; sweeping through the house it made everyone freeze and listen as the hair on their necks rose. The simple childlike rhyme made everyone wince in anxiety.

"_Eight little friends searching for an out _

_They surely won't find one, there's no doubt_

_But one was the fool and got a ticket to heaven _

_His throat was cut, and then there were seven."_

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***Evil music plays* (Please don't hate me. haha) **


	4. Chapter 4

**I'm so sorry I haven't updated in almost a year. It's been a stressful year and I haven't had time. But I missed writing and I did like this story, so I've decided to finish it. **

**Thank you for your reviews and for those who have still stuck with me after a year. **

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Chapter Four

**– And then there were Six –**

Hodgins was the only one even semi-willing to go back to where Goodman lay dead. Leaning against the wall, he took a moment to compose himself. Dr. Goodman was a good guy and though Hodgins felt some hatred towards him for leaving them, he knew that Dr. Goodman didn't deserve this. Running his hands over his face and wiping away the salty tears from his pale cheeks, Hodgins gave a sigh of defeat. There was nothing he could do. Dr. Goodman was gone, lying in a pool of blood and no one had been able to help him.

He felt so helpless. Was there nothing he could have done?

The others were still in the hallway trying to calm Cam down, but she still seemed to be in a state of dissolution after watching Dr. Goodman die before her eyes. She kept screaming that it should have been her, and between sobs and coughs she called out his name in despair.

Hodgins shook his head. This was pure insanity. Pushing a few brown curls out of his face he drew a deep breath and ventured out into the dim hallway.

_One by one,_ he thought._ We're dying one by one._

When Hodgins finally returned to the group, he wasn't surprised to find them in the midst of an argument. Booth was looking accusingly at Sweets, and though Hodgins didn't know what the young doctor had said, it was clearly something pessimistic because the next words out of Booth's mouth were, "Well, _someone _got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning."

"At least I'm _trying_ to do something," Sweets shot back.

Booth took a menacing step towards him, but before he could utter a word, Brennan cut him off. "I don't know what that means." And the sad part was that she was completely serious. "It doesn't matter which side of –"

"It's a saying, Bones," Booth told her, and the exasperation in his tone shut her up.

"Look," Sweets began, "all I'm saying is that there's obviously no –"

"There's gotta be something, Sweets!" Booth shouted back.

"Enough!" Cam yelled suddenly. "Enough!" Every eye turned to her with horror. She was still shaking uncontrollably and they couldn't be sure if that was from the virus or from just having watched a man die. "Can't you see? Can't you understand that _he_ wants this to happen? He wants us to fight and yell so we turn against ourselves. We are doing _exactly _what this freak wants."

The silence that washed over them was both agonizing and heart-shattering. How could they have let themselves fall into this maniac's trap?

"Cam," Angela said, breaking the silence.

"No… I just want to be alone." And with those words said she took off down the hall.

Zach watch Cam walk away with horror in his eyes. "I thought you said we shouldn't be alone…"

"And thanks for volunteering," Booth said in mock happiness.

"But I wasn't –"

Booth just ignored him. "Thanks."

Sighing in defeat, Zach slumped his shoulders and went after his ex-boss in the direction he thought she went.

As soon as he was gone, Booth looked around to make sure that no one was paying attention. "Bones," he whispered in Brennan's ear, lingering a little longer than necessary.

Despite herself, she had to bite her lip to hold back a sob. Even now, in the devastating situation they were in, she wondered how he managed to have an effect on her at a time like this. But if only one could live, then only one would make it out alive. What would she do without him?

"What?" she whispered back. Even she could hear the strain in her voice.

He took her by the wrist and quietly pulled her down the hallway so the others wouldn't take notice of them. "I want to give you something." He looked casually behind his shoulder to make sure that nobody had followed them. Her breath caught in her throat at the sudden closeness and she wondered if he knew that the only thing separating him from her heart was that stupid line he drew so many years ago.

"What could you possibly have to give –" She stopped abruptly at the feel of cold metal being shoved into her hand. "Booth… I don't understand… how?"

Booth glanced down at the gun that was wedged in between their hands. "I found it downstairs in the basement when you were talking to Zach. There are two bullets in it." He looked up at her with wide, warm, and trusting eyes. "If it comes down to it… I want you to use it. Okay?"

She looked at him in shock before casting an uneasy glance at the rest of her team, who weren't too far away. "I… I couldn't do that. And they wouldn't do that to us… especially Angela."

He locked her eyes with his cold gaze. "I'm not worried about Angela."

"Hodgins?" she asked, slightly agitated that he was accusing her team.

"I never said who I was worried about," he pointed out. "You did."

She just glared at him, wondering how the hell he managed to do that. "I can't," she told him, looking away.

"If it comes down to it…" Booth pressed harder. "For me. Please?"

For years she had complained how she never got a gun, but now that he was giving one to her she didn't want it. "I can't Booth. I can't do that."

"For me," he begged. "Please. I'm not saying you have to kill anyone… Just _if _it comes down to it… use it. For me? Promise me."

Brennan hesitated, but eventually took it from his hands. Never in her life had metal felt so heavy, so wrong. "I…I promise." She made a move to rush past him, more than angry at him for even bringing up the subject, but to her dismay, he caught her wrist.

"And Bones," he said, pulling her closer still.

"Yeah?"

"You're going to get out of here alive. I'll make sure of that."

For the longest time she just stared at him. For once she could defy the laws of physics and reality to read his mind. But that was irrational. You couldn't read minds and her team _wouldn't _kill anyone…but would Booth? How far would he go to ensure her safety? Sure he took a bullet for her and saved her from the gravedigger, but could – _would_ – he do more than that?

"And what about you?" she asked him in a hushed whisper.

When he only gave her a sad-eyed smile before walking away, it suddenly dawned on her. _Only one._ Without him she was nothing. The thought burned inside her head and crushed her heart. Booth and her weren't one person, so how come she felt like they operated as one?

_**-Bones-**_

"Angela," Hodgins said, coming up from behind her and making her jump. "Sorry."

She sniffed before blinking back tears. "It's fine."

But she wasn't fine. She was shaking almost uncontrollably, she was having trouble breathing, and he hadn't missed the way she coughed up blood a little while ago. They were all symptoms of the virus, and he felt his stomach drop. If Angela died he wasn't sure what he would do.

She must have caught the way he was looking at her because she soon added, "There's nothing you can do, Jack."

He looked down almost in defeat. "No... I can do something." Hodgins gave a nervous glance over his shoulder. Bones and Booth had wandered off down the hallway and were now talking passionately from the looks of it. Sweets sat huddled on the floor, and - well, looked like he always did. "What?" Angela almost snapped at him. "What could you possibly do?"

Hodgins shoved the weapon into her hand with force. "Take it."

It took her a moment to realize what it was, but once she did, her eyes widen in fear. "W-where… where did you get this?"

"I found it…" he told her honestly. "It was lying by the closet where Dr. Goodman was."

If Hodgins wasn't holding her hand she would have dropped the knife. "I can't… I can't use it…"

"Yes," he urged, his blue eyes drilling a hole into her soul. "You can and you will if you have to."

Angela glared at him. "How could you even suggest that?" She looked over at Brennan, who seemed to be scowling at something Booth had said. "Brennan… they… would _never." _

"It's not Dr. Brennan I'm worried about."

Her eyes rose with horror. "Booth? How could you possibly think that?"

"I never said who I was worried about," he pointed out in a harsh whisper.

Taking a deep breath through her nose, she closed her eyes. This wasn't happening. This _wasn't_ happening. But no matter how hard she tried to convince herself, she couldn't help but feel some doubt. If only one could live then the odds of her getting out alive were practically zero. But did she even _want_ to live if all of her friends were dead? "Jack…"

"Use it if you have to," he pressed. "For me."

"I can't make that promise."

Hodgins locked his eyes with hers, and never had she seen them filled with so much devotion and desire. "I'm going to get you out of here alive."

"You can't make that –"

"But Angela, I _can_ and _will _make that promise." And before she could argue, he squeezed her hand reassuringly and walked away, leaving her alone with the taunting knife.

_**-Bones-**_

Cam power-walked down the long hallway. She knew Zach was following her and she desperately wished that he would just stop. Him of all people… She was pretty sure she would rather Dr. Brennan over him, which was saying something. Sighing, she made a quick move towards a closed door that they had yet to enter. Maybe she could lose him. It's not that she didn't like Zach, it was just, well… She hadn't been lying when she said she wanted to be alone. And it wasn't like Zach was a people person anyway.

She looked around the room. Unlike the other rooms, this one at least had _something_. It appeared to be an old kitchen, yet all the cupboards were opened and empty. What kind of sick game was this? The door clicked open then, and she sighed in defeat. So he had found her. What could she do about it?

"Go away," she tried, but a reply never came, only the heavy footsteps from behind her. "I said go away." And just as she was about to whirl around, a thick rope wrapped around her neck. Automatically her hands went up to clutch at it, but she couldn't loosen the grip. She could feel her attacker from behind now, and though she could have easily fought back she chose not to.

From the moment she had heard that tape play, she knew that she was going to die. Why? Because she didn't _want _to be the only one to survive, to be the one left to deal with the aftermath. How could she live with herself? So when the rope pulled tighter on her neck, she closed her eyes and let the darkness take her.

They knew that someone had died as soon as that perverted child's rhyme once again swept through the house, along with a cold wind of despair. And though they didn't know if it was Zach or Cam it didn't matter, because either way they lost a life; they lost another friend.

"_Seven little friends with a wall at their back _

_Some take sides and break the pack _

_One ran out because she didn't stick. _

_She lost her sight and then there were six."_

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**Again: Sorry for the long wait. I promise that the next update will NOT take as long. Hopefully it was okay.**

**I'll update soon! Please tell me what you thought. **


	5. Chapter 5

**Thanks for the reviews! =)**

**Chapter Five – And Then There Were Five **

It didn't surprise them to see Cam dead on the floor, but it did surprise them to see Zach hovering over her with a rope tight in his hands. He looked up at them, eyes wide with fear, and then just like that he started panicking. Horror began to take a hold of him, and the team could only watch as he cried in despair.

"Zach," Hodgins began, the only one willing to strike up a conversation.

Zach cradled his head in his hands and shook with such force that the others thought the effects of the virus were finally beginning to take hold of him. "I… I… tried to follow her," he gasped out, "but she went to a room that I didn't see her go into. I couldn't find her, and then I heard struggling… Oh...I saw someone." He looked up at them, his eyes boring through them like an arrow. "I saw someone."

Hodgins knelt down, so he could see face to face with his friend. "Come on, Zach. It's okay. We can talk outside in the hallway." He gave a nervous glance at Cam, whose eyes held the same blankness as the others. But this time, Cam's death got to him. And quickly, before his sorrows and tears could break his mask, he held them back. so he could hopefully get Angela and him to live another day.

It took some time and reassuring from the others to get Zach out in the hallway, but once they did they all slumped down on the ground in defeat. If the other deaths hadn't got to them yet, Cam's death surely did. Only Booth stayed behind, desperately trying to sort out his feelings.

He blinked back tears and looked up at the ceiling as if the wall above held all the answers. "Why?" he shouted. "Why are you doing this to us?"

"Booth?"

He didn't have to look behind him to know who it was. "Yeah, Bones?" There was a crack in his voice and he couldn't help but to suppress a wince.

"I…I'm sorry." And then just like Angela had taught her, she placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

It surprised him, he wasn't going to lie. His partner who was so bad at comforting people during times of loss was doing her best now. "It's okay, Bones." He turned his face, and she subconsciously moved her hand to his cheek to wipe a few tears away. When she realized what she'd done she pulled away, but he only snatched her wrist and pulled her back. "Don't… don't go…"

"Booth?" she asked, her voice filled with warning.

When he looked up to meet her gaze, his eyes were filled not with despair, but with hope and lust. "Bones, this might be the last time…"

"No. Not now. I can't… I can't deal with this now." And as quickly as that, she pulled back and raced out of the room, leaving Booth no option but to follow her.

**-Bones-**

"What did he look like, Zach?" Sweets asked calmly.

"I… I think….I…"

"It's okay," Angela added kindly. "Take your time."

Sweets, who was always the logical one, said, "Well, let's go over what we know."

And because he couldn't help himself, Booth said, "Zach, in the kitchen, with the rope."

Brennan narrowed her eyes at him. "You never did explain that to me," she pointed out, remembering the last time he made that joke.

"It's _Clu_e, Bones. We went over this the last time."

"What clue?" She asked, annoyed. "Just because Zach was holding the rope doesn't mean he killed her. We should go about this logically –"

"I'd say it's pretty logical to say that Zach killed her with the rope, Bones," Booth argued.

Zach looked up at them accusingly. "I'm right here."

"Zach wouldn't kill Cam," Brennan whispered.

And before he could stop himself the words were out of Booth's mouth. "And what about the other man he killed, Bones? I _think – _just think – that if he killed one person, he could do it again."

"And what about you Booth?" Hodgins snapped. "How many people have you killed?"

There was a beat of silence, one that Sweets chose to break. "Zach didn't kill that man," he suddenly revealed, and every eye turned to him in confusion "Never did. It was all a lie so that he didn't have to go to prison."

Zach looked mortified by this little piece of information. "No… no…You can't break patient confidentiality…"

"What?" Brennan shot a glance back at her ex-student. Her eyes held nothing but remorse and Zach had to look away from her penetrating gaze.

Sweets scoffed in utter despair. "Zach, look around. Does it _look _like I care?"

"Well, no, but –"

"One of us _is_ going to die, Zach. Maybe we both will. I just don't care anymore," Sweets spat out as silent tears fell from his face. The truth of those words sat heavy on everyone's shoulders and nobody could seem to push that fact aside.

"Sweets," Angela began, tears already forming in her own eyes. "Please don't cry. Don't cry."

"I'm just saying," Booth continued, "that Zach –"

Zach cut him off. "I think I know –"

"And what about you?" Hodings inserted angrily. "Where were you when Dr. Goodman died?"

Brennan took a step forward. "With me. He was with me the whole time."

"No," Zach said suddenly. "I was talking to you. But that's not the point. I think I know who –"

"No. It wasn't Booth," she said, though her voice was frighteningly on edge.

"I saw," Zach tried again.

"Enough!" Angela shouted. "Enough. Don't you remember what Cam said? This is what he _wants. _All of you just stop. Stop it! I can't… I can't do this anymore." It didn't take long for the tears to come and for Angela to shut herself off. Just like that. She even pushed away Hodgins.

"I know who it was," Zach managed at last, and just like that the room went silent again.

Booth, being the first to recover, took a step forward. "Explain."

"It… I think… it was... it…."

"For the love of God, Zach," Booth huffed. "Just spit it out!"

"Gormagon," he said in a mad rush. "Gormagon. I saw Gormagon."

"Gormagon?" Booth asked in a way that clearly said he disagreed. "You saw Gormagon?"

"Yes."

Booth's face contorted into pure anger. "You know what, Zach? That's just great, 'cause you know I just saw Puff the magic dragon not too long ago. _Oh_, and how could I forget about Hannibal Lector in the basement?"

Zach looked down to avoid his gaze. "I saw him."

"You know, that'd be great if the guy wasn't in _jail_," Booth snapped, and before he could do something he would regret, Booth took off down the hallway pulling Brennan away with him.

"No," Sweets said suddenly after they were gone. "Zach's right. I'm mean, Gormagon knows all of us right?"

"Not Dr. Goodman," Hodgins said.

Sweets shrugged. "Maybe it was spite."

"I saw him. It was Gormagon," Zach insisted.

"Then how did he get out of jail?" Hodgins asked.

"I don't know," Sweets told him honestly, "But then again, how did Zach?"

**-Bones-**

"Booth," Brennan scowled, "what the hell has gotten into you?"

He turned on her so suddenly that Brennan jumped back in surprise. His eyes were dark, almost phantom like, and where there should have been tears or hope, there was only despair and hopelessness. "What the hell has gotten into me? _Me?"_ he snapped. "We are all _dying_ and I can do nothing to stop it."

"Booth, it's not your fault."

"Then how come it feels like it is?" he asked.

"But it's not."

"Bones, you don't understand. How could you?" Booth met her gaze then, and as if that were all it took, he softened immediately. "I'm sorry, Bones. I'm so sorry. Do you know what it's like to not know if the person… the one you love is okay?"

She considered this. When Booth had been kidnapped by the gravedigger and when he was shot by Pam the only thought running through her mind was that if he died, then she would too. After all, you couldn't live for very long without a heart. "Yes. I know."

Her answer surprised him, but he gave her a weak smile all the same. "I became an FBI agent to save people," he told her softly. Sighing, he looked over her shoulder at the others and then locked his dark eyes with her icy blue ones. "But I should have named names."

**-Bones-**

"I'm so thirsty," Sweets rasped out. He couldn't remember the last time he drank or ate and the side effects of not eating dinner the night before were finally beginning to its toll. And unlike the others, who _had _eaten a good meal in the past twenty-four hours, he wasn't sure he could make it much longer. He was dizzy, dehydrated, and felt like he was going to collapse at any moment.

"There's a kitchen in there." Zach pointed to the door where Cam was.

Sweets swallowed hard. "Do you think there's anything in there?"

Zach shivered at the thought. "I'm not going back in there."

"Well, he can't go in there alone," Hodgins said.

Zach held up his hands in defeat. "No. I'm not going in there. Remember the last time I went after somebody? I'm not going."

Hodgins huffed as he hauled himself and the young doctor to his feet. Angela murmured something in her sleep. It hadn't taken long for the artist to collapse with exhaustion. "Fine. I'll go. Zach, stay here with Angela."

With some help from Hodgins, Sweets did manage to stand, but with that being said it didn't take long for a wave of dizziness to overcome him. As much as Sweets wanted to believe that it was only from dehydration, there was a little voice in the back of his head that told him it was the virus. Now, all of them were beginning to experience symptoms. They were minor effects, but they were there, which was just another reminder that they did not have enough time.

"In here," Hodgins said, closing the door behind them. They were careful not to look at or trip over Cam. The slightest of glances her way could have caused both of them to empty their stomachs of an earlier meal. "Check the fridge."

"There's nothing."

Hodgins waited patiently as Sweets searched the fridge and the various cabinets. "Keep looking. I'm sure there's –"

But he never got to finish his sentence because at that moment a hand latched over his mouth, muffling his silent pleas. Sweets, hearing the commotion, turned around. Hodgins watched the young man's eyes grow wide in fear, and there was no doubt in Hodgins's mind that Sweets recognized the attacker. However, before Hodgins even had a chance to fight back, the attacker slammed him into the nearest counter and he slumped down to the floor.

Hodgins felt his world turn into a blur; there was a warm liquid flowing down his face. He could still hear the sounds around him, but only shadows danced before his eyes. Sweets was struggling, fighting for his life, but no matter how hard he tried to call out for help, all he could do was to lie on the floor and listen.

And the last thing Hodgins heard before losing consciousness was that child-like rhyme.

"_Six little friends, __want__ to live another day, _

_They turned against each other along the way. _

_The rest remain with the wish to survive_

_But one lost his breath, and then there were five."_

* * *

**_Don't be mad! Tell me what you thought! _**

**_dundundun who will be next?_**


End file.
